Background: Essential thrombocythemia (ET) is a benign disease with slow progress in which thrombosis is a cause of mortality. JAK2V617F and calreticulin (CALR) are the most frequent mutations in this disease. In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we compared the prevalence of JAK2V617F and CALR mutations in ET and examined the incidence of thrombosis and other hematologic indices.
Methods: After choosing MeSH keywords, including essential thrombocythemia, JAK2V617F, calreticulin, prognosis, and diagnosis, as well as searching Medline/PubMed and Scopus, 12 papers were selected. Data were pooled, and summary prevalence and OR were estimated using either a random-effects model or a fixed-effects model.
Results: The frequency of JAK2V617F and CALR shows heterogeneity in Caucasian population [JAK2V617 I 2% = 84.3, P < 0.001, 95% CI 0.56 (0.51-0.61)], [CALR I 2% = 96.1, P < 0.001, 95% CI 0.23 (0.15-0.31)]. The prevalence of JAK2V617F and CALR was 0.57 (95% CI 0.53-0.61), I 2% = 79.3 and 0.22 (95% CI 0.16-0.27), I 2% = 94, respectively. JAK2V617F positive ET was associated with increasing odds of thrombosis [OR 2.35 (95% CI 1.83-3.02), P < 0.001]. The incidence of splenomegaly was not statistically different between these two mutations. Hemoglobin, platelet, and WBC count did not affect the risk of thrombosis.
Conclusions: Detection of CALR mutation is helpful for molecular diagnosis of ET patients as well as JAK2V617F. Due to reduction of thrombosis in CALR-positive patients, it can be stated that such patients have less thrombotic disorders and better prognosis relative to patients bearing JAK2V617F mutation. Therefore, detection of mutation in CALR and JAK2V617F may contribute to diagnosis and prognosis of ET patients.
Keywords: Calreticulin; Diagnosis; Essential thrombocythemia; JAK2V617F; Meta-analysis; Prognosis; Thrombosis.